2023 05 10

Table of Contents:

GS Paper 1:

Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore

GS Paper 2:

Enforcement Directorate (ED)
Law to recall bad drugs

GS Paper 3:

RBI’s gold reserves

Content for Mains Enrichment (CME)

Health and nutrition: NITI Aayog’s Compendium on Best Practices in Social Sector 2023

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Tungnath temple
Maharana Pratap
Gopal Krishna Gokhale
Power to direct changes in STs list
Quota in Urban Local Bodies
North-south Asia corridor
World Thalassemia Day

Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore

GS Paper 1

Syllabus: Modern Indian History from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present- significant events, personalities, issues

Source: PIB

Context: The 162nd birth anniversary of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore was celebrated across the globe on May 7.


Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore (7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941)
About	He was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter.
Philosophies	He propagated ideas of humanism, idealism, nationalism and internationalism. One of the most remarkable institutions established by Tagore – Visva Bharati University (1921) – ushered in a new era of Indian nationalism (incorporating all the best aspects of Western culture into the best of Indian culture).
Contributions	As a freedom fighter: For him, true freedom means the ability to be truthful and honest with oneself otherwise autonomy loses all of its worth. He viewed British rule as a symptom of the overall “sickness” of the social “disease” of the public. He wrote the song ‘Banglar Mati Banglar Jol’ (Soil of Bengal, Water of Bengal) to unite the Bengali population after the Bengal partition in 1905. He actively participated in the Swadeshi movement (1905). Being shocked when it broke into communal violence, he withdrew from the movement. He wrote the ‘Amar Sonar Bangla’ (adopted as the national anthem of Bangladesh later) and ‘Jana Gana Mana’ (adopted as the national anthem of independent India later) which helped ignite a feeling of nationalism amongst people. For Hindu-Muslim unity, he started the Rakhi festival. He renounced the Knighthood in protest of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre (1919).
As a social reformer: He constantly questioned the importance of caste in India’s discourse. In his poem – ‘The Sacred Touch’ (in the Harijan) and drama – ‘Chandalika’, he shunned untouchability as being inhumane. His works – Chokher Bali (on themes like widowhood, patriarchy and child marriage), Maanbhajan, and Aparichita (shunning the practice of dowry) – touched upon almost all the social evils of that time.
Works	He published his first poems at the age of 16 under the pen name ‘Bhanusimha’. His notable works include Gitanjali, Ghare-Baire, Gora, Manasi, Balaka, and Sonar Tori. He is also remembered for his song ‘Ekla Chalo Re’. For all his contributions he is widely known as ‘Kavi guru’.
Tagore vs Gandhi	He was a good friend of Mahatma Gandhi and is said to have given him the title of Mahatma. However, both disagreed on key issues at times. For example, Tagore sharply criticised Gandhi, after he blamed the prevalence of untouchability for the massive earthquake in Bihar. Tagore renounced British imperialism, yet he did not fully support or agree with Gandhi and his Non-cooperation movement.
Awards	In 1913 he became the first non-European to have won the Nobel Prize in Literature for his novel ‘Geetanjali’. Knighthood was given to him by Lord Hardinge in 1915.
Relevance today	Tagore’s ideas on nationalism, humanism, internationalism and divinity stay as alive and relevant.

Insta Links:

Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore

Prelims Links: (UPSC 2021)

With reference to Madanapalle of Andhra Pradesh, which one of the following statements is correct?

Pingali Venkayya designed the tricolour Indian National Flag here.
Pattabhi Sitaramaiah led the Quit India Movement of the Andhra region from here.
Rabindranath Tagore translated the National Anthem from Bengali to English here.
Madame Blavatsky and Colonel Olcott set up the headquarters of the Theosophical Society first here.

Ans: 3

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, 10 May CA, GS 1, Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, Today's Article, Today’s article

Enforcement Directorate (ED)

GS2/GS3

Syllabus: Statutory bodies/ Money Laundering

Source: IE

Context: The question of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) chief’s tenure is back in the Supreme Court of India.

Explaining the issues:

The tenure for directors of CBI and ED is two years. However, in November 2021, the President promulgated two ordinances allowing the Centre to extend the tenures from two years to up to five years. So, now they can be given three annual extensions. The Supreme Court had previously upheld this and allowed the extension of ED’s chief Sanjay Kumar Mishra, but said that such extension should be done in rare and exceptional cases and for a short period.

Now, the government has again extended the tenure of Mr Mishra citing a pending review by the Financial Action Task Force and that Mishra would not remain in service after his term comes to an end in November. This has been challenged in SC again.

Issues with ED and PMLA:


Issue	Example
Misuse of PMLA for ordinary crimes	PMLA is used to investigate crimes not related to money laundering or organized crime, leading to the attachment of assets of genuine victims.
Lack of transparency and clarity	The Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) is not given to the accused and the ED lacks clarity in selecting cases to investigate.
Blanket powers	The ED has been assigned almost blanket powers under PMLA for searching, seizing, investigating, and attaching assets considered to be proceeds of crime.
Low conviction rate	Between 2005 and 2013-14, there were zero convictions, and between 2014-15 and 2021-22, only 23 cases were under conviction out of 888 cases registered.
Allegation of Political biases	“Political figures who have crossed over to the government side have mysteriously been given ‘clean chits’ or have seen ED go slow in proceedings against them”

Way forward:

While the ED has been given expansive powers under PMLA, there must be a balance between these powers and adherence to constitutional provisions to prevent political misuse. The process of investigation should not become a punishment, and there should be a commitment to expeditiously resolve cases for speedy trials and convictions.

Constant scrutiny over the operations of the Enforcement Directorate is necessary, and any lacunas in the operative part can be filled through suitable legislation, executive action, or a revised order of the apex court.

Insta Links:

ED

Mains Links:

The erosion of institutional autonomy and freedom in the decision-making of organisations like the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has weakened Indian polity and democracy. Critically analyse. (250 Words)

Discuss how emerging technologies and globalisation contribute to money laundering. Elaborate measures to tackle the problem of money laundering both at national and international levels. ( UPSC 2021)

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, Enforcement Directorate (ED), PMLA, Today's Article

Law to recall bad drugs

GS2/GS3

Syllabus: Governance – Government Policies & Interventions in Various Sectors

Source: TH

Context: India has not implemented a law to recall bad drugs from the market since 1976, even though discussions have taken place on this topic several times over the years.

What is a drug recall?

A drug recall is the process of removing a prescription or over-the-counter drug from the market. A recall may occur if a medication is found to be defective, contaminated, or potentially harmful to the public.

Drug regulation in India:

In India, drugs and cosmetics are regulated by:

Act: Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Rules 1945: It assigns various responsibilities to central and state regulators.
Agencies:
Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI): It is responsible for approving licenses for specified categories of drugs, setting standards for manufacturing, sales, import, and distribution of drugs in India, and heads the department of CDSCO.
Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO): It prescribes standards for ensuring the safety, efficacy, and quality of drugs, cosmetics, diagnostics, and devices. It also regulates the market authorization of new drugs and clinical trial standards.
National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA): It controls the pricing of pharmaceutical drugs in India

Why India doesn’t have a law for drug recall?


Reasons	Explanation
Apathy and Lack of Expertise	The government’s drug regulatory bodies give more importance to promoting the growth of the pharma industry than restricting their activities. Moreover, they lack expertise in drug regulation (as USA FDA has)
Fragmented Regulatory Structure	India has a highly fragmented regulatory structure, with each state having its own drug regulator.
Opposition to Centralized Regulatory	Both the pharmaceutical industry and state drug regulators have resisted greater centralization of regulatory powers. They fear that a central regulator could slow down the growth of the industry.
No Interest in Government	There appears to be no sustained demand from civil society for reform, and the government is more invested in the growth of the pharmaceutical industry.

Impact of substandard drugs:


Impact	Example
Adverse health effects	In 2022, the World Health Organization linked the deaths of almost 60 children in Gambia to substandard cough syrups manufactured in India.
Loss of trust in the healthcare system	In 2019, the case of supplying substandard and falsified antiretroviral drugs to the government in South Africa.
Economic losses for patients and the healthcare system	Patients may have to spend more money on healthcare due to the need for additional treatments and hospitalizations.
Legal and regulatory consequences for manufacturers	In 2021, a firm was seized in Agra City (UP) for purchasing expired drugs at low costs and reselling them with new packaging. The company may face legal consequences for these actions.

Way forward:

To create an effective recall mechanism, the responsibility of recalling drugs needs to be centralized under one authority with the legal power to hold companies liable for failures to recall drugs and search and seize batches of failed medicine.

Insta Links:
Spurious Drug Menace

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, Drug Recall law, Spurious Drug Menace, Today's Article

RBI’s gold reserves

GS Paper 3

Syllabus: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources

Source: IE

Context: The RBI’s gold reserves touched 794.64 metric tonnes in fiscal 2023, an increase of nearly 5% over fiscal 2022.

Gold reserves

Meaning: It is the gold held by a national central bank.
Purpose:
- A guarantee to redeem promises to pay depositors, note holders/paper money/trading peers, during the era of the gold standard – a monetary system (until 1971) in which the standard economic unit of account is based on a fixed quantity of gold.
- Currently, a store of value/ to support the value of the national currency.

Why gold is used as a reserve in Central banks?

Unlike fiat currencies, which can be subject to inflation or devaluation due to various economic factors, the value of gold tends to be relatively stable over time, which makes it an attractive asset for central banks to hold as a reserve. Additionally, gold is highly liquid, which means it can easily be converted into cash or used to settle international transactions.

Composition of India’s gold reserves:

The 794.64 tonnes of gold reserves included gold deposits of 56.32 tonnes.
437.22 tonnes of gold is held overseas in safe custody with the Bank of England and the Bank of International Settlements (BIS).
301.10 tonnes of gold is held domestically.

Comparing with total foreign exchange reserves:

As on March 31 2023, India’s total foreign exchange (forex) reserves stood at $578.449 billion, and gold reserves were pegged at $45.2 billion.
Thus, the share of gold in the total forex increased from about 7% (March 2022) to about 7.81%.

Why are these reserves increasing?

RBI has been adding gold to its reserves to diversify its overall reserves.
- This change in strategy has been driven by negative interest rates in the past, the weakening of the dollar, global uncertainty and rising inflation.
As gold is considered a more safe, secure and liquid asset, it can safeguard RBI’s returns.

What are other central banks doing?

Many other central banks, including the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), etc., have been buying gold.
The two key drivers behind the decision to hold gold – its performance during crisis times and its role as a long-term store of value.

Insta Links:

Rising forex reserves and their importance

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, Today's Article

Content for Mains Enrichment (CME)

Source: Niti Aayog

Every day, in this section we are bringing best practices from each category. Today’s best practices will cover the ‘Health and nutrition’


Initiative Name	Objective	Outcome
HBNC+ (Odisha)	Reduce diarrhoea and pneumonia in infants and improve nutrition	68% of infants receiving four complete home visits in three districts
ReMiND (Uttar Pradesh)	Reduce maternal and newborn deaths by strengthening supportive supervision of ASHAs	After 2 years of ReMiND implementation, there was an increase in knowledge of pregnancy danger signs; more care-seeking and increased quality of care
Nutri Garden Initiative (ICDS, Rajasthan)	Promote nutrition security and dietary diversity through community nutrition gardens	70% of 300 malnourished children were able to fight malnutrition in the Banswara district
AMMA program (ICDS, Rajasthan)	Community-based program for managing acute malnutrition	More than 87% of children recovered during the treatment phase
Mera Baccha Abhiyan (Datia, Madhya Pradesh)	Combat malnutrition through public participation	A remarkable reduction of 17% in malnutrition rate, higher immunization rate, increased breast-feeding

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, NITI Aayog’s Compendium on Best Practices in Social Sector 2023, Today's Article

Tungnath temple

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: NIE

Context: As per the Archaeological Department of Uttarakhand, Kedar Tungnath Temple will be declared a national monument

About the Temple


Aspect	Details
Location	Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand
Significance	It is the third of the five Panchkedars of Uttarakhand and a significant pilgrimage site for Hindus
Special Feature	It is the only ancient ‘Shivalaya’ of its kind located at the highest point above sea level in Asia
About Panchkedars	Panchkedars (“five+ Kedar (Shiva)”) are a group of five sacred Hindu temples dedicated to Lord Shiva, located in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. Kedarnath, Tungnath, Rudranath, Madhyamaheshwar, and Kalpeshwar. It is believed that the Panchkedars were built by the Pandavas during the Mahabharata era.

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, Arts and Culture, Today's Article, Tungnath temple

Maharana Pratap

Source: PIB

Context: Prime Minister has called Maharana Pratap a symbol of courage, valour and pride while paying tributes on the Jayanti of Maharana Pratap.

About


Description	Details
Rana Pratap Singh (Maharana Pratap) was a Hindu Rajput king of Mewar from the Sisodia dynasty. He fought several major battles against Akbar including the Battle of Haldighati in 1576 to resist the expansionist policy of the Mughal empire
Capital	Chittor (ruled by Maharana Udai Singh II)
City founded	Udaipur (by Maharana Udai Singh II)
Battle	Battle of Haldighati fought in 1576 with Raja Man Singh of Amber, general of Mughal emperor Akbar. Maharana Pratap was defeated.
Horse	Maharana Pratap’s loyal horse named Chetak
Legacy	Known for his bravery and patriotism towards his kingdom

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, Maharana Pratap, Today's Article

Gopal Krishna Gokhale

Source: PIB

Context: Prime Minister has paid homage to Gopal Krishna Gokhale on his birth anniversary.

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Today's Article

Power to direct changes in STs list

Source: TH

Context: CJI questioned an old Constitution Bench judgment – no court or State has the power to add/subtract/modify the Scheduled Tribes List – was not shown to the Manipur HC.

Background: Violent clashes followed after a Single Judge Bench of the Manipur HC directed that the State government shall consider the case for the inclusion of the Meetei/Meitei community (in Manipur) in the ST list, expeditiously.

Article 342 of the Indian Constitution:

Clause (1): The President may, with respect to any State (after consultation with the Governor) or UT, by public notification, specify the tribes deemed to be ST in relation to that state or UT.
Clause (2): The Parliament may by law include or exclude from the list of ST specified in the above notification.
The above Article also provides for listing of STs State/UT wise and not on an all-India basis.

The Maharashtra versus Milind (2000) case:

A notification issued under Article 342 (1), specifying STs, can be amended only by law to be made by Parliament.
In other words, inclusion/exclusion from the list of STs issued under Article 342 (1) can be made only by Parliament by law and by no other authority.

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, 9 May CA, Article 342(1), Power to direct changes in STs list, The Maharashtra versus Milind (2000) case, Today's Article, Today’s articles

Quota in Urban Local Bodies

Source: IE

Context: The Haryana Cabinet has accepted the State Backward Classes Commission’s report on the proportion of reservations for the Backward Classes Block-A category in urban local bodies.

Recommendation of the commission:

The commission has recommended that every municipal body should have at least one councillor belonging to BC (A) if its population is not less than two per cent of the total population of the urban local body.
There are 78 backward classes in Haryana and 72 of them have been notified in the Block-A sub-category and six in the Block-B category.

OBC reservation in local body polls:


Information	Details
Supreme Court	As per the directions of the Supreme Court, the reservation shall not exceed the aggregate of 50 per cent of the total seats reserved
Triple test formula	In December 2021 the Supreme Court directed that reservation for OBCs in local bodies will not be permitted unless they fulfil the triple test ( laid down in the SC’s own 2010 decision)
Other states with OBC reservation	Madhya Pradesh; 27% OBC reservations in local body elections in Maharashtra; 33% quota for OBCs in ULB polls in Karnataka
Reservation provisions for SC/ST	Provided in the 73rd & 74th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1992. Article 243T makes provisions for the reservation of seats in ULBs. · Seats are reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in every Municipally. · Not less than one-third of the total number of seats are reserved for women. · The office of Chairpersons in the Municipalities shall be reserved for the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and women.
Other Commissions	Kalelkar Commission identified backward classes other than SCs and STs in 1953. Mandal Commission (1980) estimated the OBC population at 52% and recommended increasing existing quotas to 49.5%.

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, Quota in Urban Local Bodies, Today's Article

North-south Asia corridor

Source: IE

Context: In a recent meeting between India’s National Security Advisor and his US, Saudi Arabia, and UAE counterparts, a proposal for linking countries in West Asia through rail networks and roads, as well as building corridors between the region and South Asia through sea lanes came up.

About the plan for the North-South Asia corridor:


Topic	Information
Proposal	Link countries in West Asia through rail networks and roads, as well as build corridors between the region and South Asia through sea lanes.
Response to	China’s Belt and Road Initiative
Viability	a) Asian countries now understand the issues with China’s “debt trap” diplomacy, b) There is a visible reduction in the rivalry between the West Asian countries, c) Indian expertise in railways as demonstrated recently in Sri Lanka
De-hyphenation	The Abraham Accords of 2020 functionally normalised ties between Israel and the UAE and Bahrain. Similarly, Saudi Arabia and Iran also restored their ties earlier this year.
Challenges for India	a) Land connectivity with West Asia remains a challenge for India, due to the India-Pakistan issue, b) the new project will test India’s balancing act with Russia and China and Russia and the West.
Advantages for India	Provide energy security, Increase India’s credibility in project execution, Increase employability
Other transport corridors in India	International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC); Ashgabat Agreement; India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway; India-Iran-Afghanistan Road Transport Corridor

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, north-south Asia corridor, Today's Article

World Thalassemia Day

Source: PIB

Context: The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoH&FW) launched the III phase of the Thalassemia Bal Sewa Yojana (TBSY) to commemorate World Thalassemia Day (May 8).

Thalassemia:

Thalassemia is an inherited (passed from parents to children through genes) blood disorder caused when the body doesn’t make enough of a protein called haemoglobin, an important part of RBCs.
Thalassemia is a treatable disorder that can be well-managed with blood transfusions and chelation therapy.

Steps taken in India:

The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016: Thalassemia was recognised as a benchmark disability.
TBSY: Coal India Limited, under the auspices of the MoH&FW, is implementing TBSY (since 2017) as part of its CSR initiative to support the treatment of children affected by Thalassemia and Aplastic Anaemia.
National mission to tackle thalassemia: The Union government will soon launch the mission with a country-wide screening exercise.

May 10, 2023 /10 May 2023, Today's Article